Astilbe plant named ‘Lovely Day’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of  Astilbe  plant named ‘Lovely Day’, characterized by its compact, broadly upright and mounding plant habit; moderately vigorous growth habit; dense and bushy appearance; dark green-colored leaves; freely and uniformly flowering habit; light pink-colored flowers on strong, tall and upright peduncles; and good container and garden performance.

Botanical designation: Astilbe arendsii.

Cultivar denomination: ‘LOVELY DAY’.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO A RELATED APPLICATION AND STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY INVENTOR/APPLICANT

This application claims priority to a European Community Plant Breeders' Rights application filed on Feb. 1, 2020, application number 20200353. There have been no offers for sale anywhere in the world prior to the effective filing date of this Application and no accessibility to one of ordinary skill in the art could have been derived from the printed Plant Breeder's Rights documents.

The Inventor/Applicant asserts that no publications nor advertisements relating to sales, offers for sale or public distribution occurred more than one year prior to the effective filing date of this application. Any information about the claimed plant would have been obtained from a direct or indirect disclosure from the Inventor. Applicant claims a prior art exemption under 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1) for disclosure and/or sales prior to the filing date but less than one year prior to the effective filing date.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Astilbe, botanically known as Astilbe arendsii and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Lovely Day’.

The new Astilbe plant is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Heemskerk, The Netherlands. The objective of the breeding program was to create new uniform and freely flowering Astilbe plants with attractive leaf and flower coloration.

The new Astilbe plant originated from a cross-pollination in 2013 in Heemskerk, The Netherlands, of two unidentified Astilbe arendsii seedling selections. The new Astilbe plant was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant from within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination in a controlled greenhouse environment in Heemskerk, The Netherlands during the summer of 2015.

Asexual reproduction of the new Astilbe plant by vegetative divisions in a controlled nursery environment in Heemskerk, The Netherlands since December, 2015, has shown that the unique features of this new Astilbe plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Plants of the new Astilbe have not been observed under all possible combinations of environmental conditions and cultural practices. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environmental conditions such as temperature and light intensity without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Lovely Day’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Lovely Day’ as a new and distinct Astilbe plant:

-   -   1. Compact, broadly upright and mounding plant habit.     -   2. Moderately vigorous growth habit.     -   3. Dense and bushy appearance.     -   4. Dark green-colored leaves.     -   5. Freely and uniformly flowering habit.     -   6. Light pink-colored flowers on strong, tall and upright         peduncles.     -   7. Good container and garden performance.

Plants of the new Astilbe differ primarily from plants of the parent selections in plant habit as plants of the new Astilbe are more compact and denser than plants of the parent selections. In addition, inflorescences of plants of the new Astilbe are longer than inflorescences of plants of the parent selections.

Plants of the new Astilbe can be compared to plants of Astilbe arendsii ‘Versilverypink’, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 20,656. In side-by-side comparisons, plants of the new Astilbe and ‘Versilverypink’ differ primarily in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Inflorescences of plants of the new Astilbe are smaller than         inflorescences of plants of ‘Versilverypink’.     -   2. Flowers of plants of the new Astilbe are lighter pink in         color than flowers of plants of ‘Versilverypink’.

Plants of the new Astilbe can be compared to plants of Astilbe japonica ‘Europa’, not patented. In side-by-side comparisons, plants of the new Astilbe and ‘Europa’ differ primarily in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Astilbe are more compact than plants of         ‘Europa’.     -   2. Inflorescences of plants of the new Astilbe are longer and         narrower than inflorescences of plants of ‘Europa’.     -   3. Flowers of plants of the new Astilbe are lighter pink in         color than flowers of plants of ‘Europa’.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS

The accompanying colored photographs illustrate the overall appearance of the new Astilbe plant showing the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in the photographs may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of the new Astilbe plant.

The photograph on the first sheet (FIG. 1 of 2) is a side perspective view of a typical flowering plant of ‘Lovely Day’ grown in a container.

The photograph on the second sheet (FIG. 2 of 2) is a close-up view of typical inflorescences of ‘Lovely Day’.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The aforementioned photographs and following observations, measurements and values describe plants grown during the summer in 19-cm containers in an outdoor nursery in Heemskerk, The Netherlands and under cultural practices typical of commercial Astilbe production. During the production of the plants, day temperatures ranged from 20° C. to 40° C. and night temperatures ranged from 8° C. to 24° C. Plants were one year old when the photographs and description were taken. In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 2015 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.

-   Botanical classification: Astilbe arendsii ‘Lovely Day’. -   Parentage:     -   -   Female, or seed, parent.—Unidentified Astilbe arendsii             seedling selection, not patented.         -   Male, or pollen, parent.—Unidentified Astilbe arendsii             seedling selection, not patented. -   Propagation:     -   -   Type.—By vegetative divisions.         -   Time to initiate roots.—About three weeks at temperatures             about 20° C.         -   Root description.—Thick, fleshy; typically brown in color,             actual color of the roots is dependent on substrate             composition, water quality, fertilizer type and formulation.         -   Rooting habit.—Freely branching; dense. -   Plant description:     -   -   Plant form and growth habit.—Herbaceous perennial; compact,             broadly upright and mounding plant form with inflorescences             held above the foliar plane; flowering stems and leaves             basal; freely flowering with numerous basal branches             developing per plant, dense and bushy; moderately vigorous             growth habit; and freely and uniformly flowering habit.         -   Growth rate.—Moderately rapid; from divisions, about three             months are required to produce fully-grown flowering plants             in containers.         -   Plant height (soil level to top of foliar plane).—About 24.7             cm.         -   Plant height (soil level to top of inflorescences).—About             42.1 cm.         -   Plant width (spread).—About 42 cm.         -   Stem description.—Length: About 18.9 cm. Diameter: About             2.5 mm. Internode length: About 3 cm. Strength: Strong.             Aspect: Erect to about 25° from vertical. Texture and             luster: Sparsely pubescent; moderately glossy. Color,             developing: Close to 144A. Color, developed: Close to 146C. -   Leaf description:     -   -   Arrangement.—Alternate; biternately compound; on average,             about 17 leaflets per leaf.         -   Leaf length (excluding petiole).—About 11.5 cm.         -   Leaf width.—About 10.7 cm.         -   Terminal leaflet length.—About 4.4 cm.         -   Terminal leaflet width.—About 1.9 cm.         -   Lateral leaflet length.—About 3.1 cm.         -   Lateral leaflet width.—About 1.1 cm.         -   Leaf shape, in outline.—Broadly ovate to deltoid.         -   Leaflet shape.—Elliptic to narrowly obovate.         -   Leaflet apex.—Apiculate to acuminate.         -   Leaflet base.—Attenuate to long attenuate.         -   Leaflet margin.—Biserrate.         -   Leaflet texture and luster, upper surface.—Sparsely             pubescent; slightly to moderately glossy.         -   Leaflet texture and luster, lower surface.—Sparsely to             moderately pubescent; slightly glossy.         -   Leaflet venation pattern.—Pinnate.         -   Leaflet color.—Developing leaflets, upper surface: Close to             144A. Developing leaflets, lower surface: Close to between             143B and 144B. Fully expanded leaflets, upper surface:             Darker than between 147A and N189A; venation, close to 146D.             Fully expanded leaflets, lower surface: Close to NN137C;             venation, close to 146D.         -   Leaf petiole length.—About 10.2 cm.         -   Leaf petiole diameter.—About 2 mm.         -   Leaf and leaflet petiole strength.—Strong.         -   Leaf and leaflet petiole texture and luster, upper and lower             surfaces.—Sparsely pubescent; moderately glossy.         -   Leaf and leaflet petiole color, upper surface.—Close to             146C.         -   Leaf and leaflet petiole color, lower surface.—Close to             146D. -   Flower description:     -   -   Flower type and flowering habit.—Single rotate flowers             arranged on terminal compound panicles; flowers face             upright, outward or downward depending on position on the             inflorescence; panicles conical in shape; freely and             uniformly flowering habit with about 2,000 flowers             developing per inflorescence and about 28,000 flowers             developing per plant during the flowering season.         -   Fragrance.—Moderately strong; sweet and pleasant.         -   Natural flowering season.—Plants begin flowering about 13             weeks after planting; continuously flowering from late             spring until late summer in The Netherlands.         -   Postproduction longevity.—Flowers last about ten days on the             plant; flowers not persistent.         -   Flower buds.—Height: About 2.5 mm. Diameter: About 2 mm.             Shape: Broadly elliptic. Texture and luster: Smooth,             glabrous; matte. Color: Sepals, close to 145B and petals,             close to 69B.         -   Inflorescence height.—About 19.9 cm.         -   Inflorescence diameter.—About 15.7 cm.         -   Flower diameter.—About 8 mm.         -   Flower depth.—About 4 mm.         -   Petals.—Quantity per flower: Typically five in a single             whorl. Length: About 4.5 mm. Width: About 0.75 mm. Shape:             Oblanceolate. Apex: Obtuse. Base: Narrowly cuneate. Margin:             Entire; not undulate. Texture and luster, upper and lower             surfaces: Smooth, glabrous; slightly glossy. Color:             Developing petals, upper and lower surfaces: Close to 75D.             Fully expanded petals, upper and lower surfaces: Close to             75C to 75D; color does not change with development.         -   Sepals.—Quantity per flower: Typically five in a single             whorl, lower 25% fused towards the base forming a             campanulate-shaped calyx. Length: About 2 mm. Width: About             1 mm. Shape: Ovate. Apex: Bluntly acute. Base: Cuneate,             fused. Margin: Entire. Texture and luster, upper and lower             surfaces: Smooth, glabrous; matte. Color: Developing sepals,             upper and lower surfaces: Close to between 150D and 155A; at             the apex, tinged with close to 75D. Fully expanded sepals,             upper and lower surfaces: Close to 150D; at the apex, tinged             with close to 75D; colors do not change with development.         -   Peduncles.—Length: About 19.6 cm. Diameter: About 1.75 mm.             Angle: Mostly erect. Strength: Strong. Texture and luster:             Moderately to densely pubescent; slightly glossy. Color:             Close to 144A.         -   Pedicels.—Length: About 1.5 mm. Diameter: About 0.5 mm.             Angle: About 45° from peduncle axis. Strength: Moderately             strong. Texture and luster: Moderately pubescent; matte.             Color: Close to N155B.         -   Reproductive organs.—Stamens: Quantity per flower: Typically             ten; anthers basifixed. Filament length: About 2 mm.             Filament color: Close to 75D. Anther shape: Broadly ovate.             Anther length: About 0.3 mm. Anther diameter: About 0.2 mm.             Anther color: Close to 155A. Pollen amount: Scarce. Pollen             color: Close to NN155A. Pistils: Quantity per flower: Two.             Pistil length: About 2 mm. Stigma diameter: About 0.1 mm.             Stigma shape: Club-shaped. Stigma color: Close to 75D. Style             length: About 1 mm. Style color: Close to NN155A. Ovary             color: Close to NN155A.         -   Seeds and fruits.—To date, seed and fruit development have             not been observed on plants of the new Astilbe. -   Pathogen & pest resistance: To date, plants of the new Astilbe have     not been noted to be resistant to pathogens and pests common to     Astilbe plants. -   Garden performance: Plants of the new Astilbe have been observed to     have good garden performance and tolerate rain, wind, temperatures     ranging from about −25° to 35° C. and to be suitable for USDA     Hardiness Zones 5 through 10. 

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct Astilbe plant named ‘Lovely Day’ as illustrated and described. 